I think I’m going to try this ‘live-blogging’ stuff. Like, ‘live-blogging at the oscars’, or whatever, but I’m going to do ‘live blogging from Dirt’s job’ or maybe, ‘live blogging while watching tv’. I think it’ll spruce up the site. Normally I just live blog while blogging, which can’t be that interesting for my average 6 readers. I’ll keep you posted.
Why is it, every rock band ever, when they decide to ‘grow’ adds strings? I’ve been listening a little bit to the new modest mouse record, ‘we were dead before the ship even sank’. It’s not bad, and there’s even some good stuff on there. That being said, I can’t believe that 96 and 97, they put out two of the best albums I’ve ever heard, with each album getting slightly further away from their greatness. Not wanting to be Mr. They Were Better When I Was a Kid, I relistened to the lonesome crowded west and this is a long drive for someone with nothing to think about again today, and they’re just fucking brilliant records.
I’ve been sick since a recent trip to LA. But, while there, I got my favorite record from 98, neutral milk hotel’s in the aeroplane over the sea. For some reason, I had just never listened to these guys until a friend turned me on about a year ago. Maybe it was their name, maybe I was tired of hearing about the elephant 6 collective, but I never cottoned to it. But holy sheep shit, what a record.
This is one of my favorite new toys on the web. Money was more valuable in 1800 than 1900. Who knew?
Saw the Shins last night, won’t go into the review I’ve been writing in my head most of the day, because it’s largely been done already. Many apologies for the week long absense, but I’ve been playing single dad a little bit, which is fun, but tiring.
Talking with a friend last night about obsession, and I pointed out that I’m pretty nerdily obsessive about music. Then today, I reread Slaughterhouse-5, and have merged the two things in my mind. I realize that the primary reason I like music, and obsess about it so much, is that it allows me to come unstuck in time. Right now I’m listening to ‘the prize fighter’ by the velvet teen and it sends me to the fire escape of the house I lived in on Page St. , smoking a cigarette, reading an R. Crumb comic, and thinking about what to make for dinner in 2002.
I switch gears to elvis presley and america by u2, and I’m driving home from my girlfriend’s house in late February of 1992. We got sad because she’s going to college a year before me and we both recognize the need to split up, though neither of us wants to.
Have a day by the polyphonic spree - it’s spring of 2003. Seven AM or so, Ben and I are driving from San Francisco to LA, and he’s got this comp with a great new song. I look at him like he’s crazy, but then it kicks in, and I love it.
Girlfriend in a coma. I’m fourteen and laughing my ass off in the kitchen of the house, by myself, wearing boxers and socks.
So there it is - and I’m always looking for the next fix, because a good hook, a nice melody, solid lyrics, or sometimes white noise is more powerful than any drug I’ve ever taken, and significantly better for me.
Hopefully more comics soon.
Bunch of things today to make up for lack of yesterday. I had been planning on writing this big essay about how the internet is subtly changing independent music in ways I’m not super comfortable with. One example was how (here it comes), ‘in my day’ we’d do mail-order by sending people wadded up cash in an envelope to get their zines/7″s/cassettes/lps etc. Now, you simply paypal money to people (and, how fucked is it that paypal is now a verb in my vernacular?), and they ship your shit off.
Well, Nicole, over at Rococo Records has destroyed my thesis. I paypal’d her $6 the other day for a CFTPA 7″ (cover of paul simon’s graceland — it’d brilliant, get it. limited to 500, and I got number 3– something, so hurry!). I waited a week or so, and yesterday I got the record in a lovingly decorated envelope with hearts and rainbows on it, and a letter…A LETTER from Nicole saying how happy she was that I liked CFTPA and Rococo, and she suggested I get their next 10″ their putting out by here brother’s band because, ‘it’s full of L-O-V-E’. OK, and I’m sold. The letter came in a sweet envelope with stickers and it was just super sweet. And, I’ll say it, I was reminded of the ‘old days’.
Secondly, I read today about In The Attic, which is Rachel Fuller’s video blog. Turns out, ole Ray-Ray is lovers with Mr. Pete Townsend (who, I might add, is hottttt these days), so they do this video blog where all the hip young bands go ‘in the attic’ and record tunes acoustically with Pete and Rachel. It’s actually a pretty neat project, except, I couldn’t get any of the videos to load yet. So who knows. I’m just glad that Pete’s doing something cool besides hanging around with Roger Daltrey. I picked up two of Pete’s 80’s solo albums. And they suck. So I’m glad that 20 years later, he’s doing cool stuff again. I should add, Rachel? Also a cutie. Well, not cute, but, well, now I’m blushing.
Lastly, I’m having a Dirtbag contest. Every time I actually label a post, I label with whatever lyric happens to be playing as I type. The contest then is to name the song. And I ask, please don’t google it, and then enter. That’s lame. You need to know the song. First person to comment with the correct song title, band, and album it appeared on gets a free, yes free printed out Dirtbag cartoon of their choice. Suitable for framing, and can come signed, inscribed, or I can sleep naked next to it for one night before sending it out so that it carries Dirt’s essence more truly. Good luck. Oh, and only 1 win/month. I don’t want to just print out a cartoon for Bobby every day.
Of course, ‘Tailored slim for your hands, slim for your lips’ kind of rocks too. Not at all demeaning to women.
Got back last night. Swamped with work, so not much right now. Took a quiz, and discovered I’m almost an anti-semite. Had the great pleasure of meeting up with Owen of Casiotone for the Painfully Alone to buy some records this weekend, and he threw in a poster for his record, Answering Machine Music.
On the bus back from the airport yesterday, thought of three or four good comix, which hopefully I can get up today/tomorrow. They’re funny, and more gag-ish, which is good. How many pedophilia strips can I do before I lose all 14.67 of my regular readers*? The new gags likely come from picking up the expanded ‘I Am Going to be Small’ by Jeffrey Brown this weekend. You should get it too. $14 for that many laughs is almost criminal.
